Spectators gathered on the ground and in nearby buildings to watch the implosion of the twenty-one story Carlton House Hotel, which lasted just seven seconds. In the foreground of the opening shot are the Pittsburgh Press Building and the Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail. Behind the Carlton House is the William Penn Hotel.

The hotel, which opened on March 1st, 1952, was built during Renaissance I, a period of urban renewal that occurred between the end of World War II and the early 1970s. The building's destruction took place during Renaissance II, a period during the 1980s that also saw the construction of PPG Place and Oxford Centre. Along with hotel rooms, the Carlton House also contained apartments, offices, and shops. The hotel's former location, at 6th Avenue and Grant Street, is now occupied by One Mellon Bank Center, which was formerly known as the Dravo Building.